Floating solar power plant comes to Chandigarh

It has been designed to supply power to fountains at the lake for aeration.The USP is its dual-axis tracking technology that has been developed indigenously, which is capable of generating 30 per cent or more power than conventional solar photovoltaic ones mounted on the ground.PTI | Updated: July 25, 2016, 11:51 IST

Chandigarh: A floating solar power plant pilot of 10 kw peak (kWp) -- the peak power -- has been commissioned at Dhanas lake here amid efforts by the government to develop the Union Territory as a solar city.

It has been designed to supply power to fountains at the lake for aeration.

The USP is its dual-axis tracking technology that has been developed indigenously, which is capable of generating 30 per cent or more power than conventional solar photovoltaic ones mounted on the ground.

In a move towards realising the broader objective, Yellow 2 Gen Energy Pvt, which installed the plant recently, has proposed to the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST) for innovative development of the land-neutral solar photovoltaic (floating SPV) plants.

"The approximate cost of the 10 kWp floating solar power plant designed by Yellow is around Rs 12 lakh," Jeevan Mohanty, one of the Co-founders and Director of Yellow 2 Gen Energy, said.

This technological innovation means the platform could be set up on small water bodies for meeting captive energy requirements as well as conservation of lakes and ponds.

Highlighting its relevance, Vivek Jha, a Co-founder and Director, said a decision to promote installation of floating solar power plants will benefit states that are grappling with the problem of land acquisition.

"Yellow's design has dual-axis tracking, which leads to higher energy generation and makes it cost-effective," Rakesh Chauhan, the other Co-founder and also a Director, said.

The floating power plant in the planned city is yet another attempt to achieve practical and tangible progress in harnessing solar energy and facilitate large-scale generation of electrical energy through solar radiation at economically viable cost.

The government has earlier chosen Chandigarh to develop it as a model solar city and has an ambitious plan for deployment of 175 GW renewable power capacity by 2022, including 100 GW in solar energy.

“To save the environment and to fight climate change, my government has planned a major campaign. By 2022, we want to generate 175 GW of renewable energy. In the last three years, we have already achieved 60 GW or around one-third of this target,” he said.